Instead of Glass, There was Ice
by H-Mira
Summary: A different take on what happened after Hinamori read the final words that her beloved dead captain left behind for her. And a whole new story begins... Just what will Hinamori do, when life as she knows it has changed forever?
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome to my new story!**

 **I've had this idea in mind for a while and now that I've finished _To Be With You_ , I thought that I might as well write it!**

 **Let me know what you think!**

 **~H-Mira**

* * *

Chapter 1:

She couldn't believe her eyes. One minute Hinamori Momo was reading the final words her captain had left for her, and the next she was in complete shock as the words on the parchment paper changed before her eyes, leaving a hidden message in their wake. As she strive to read the new message through tear stricken eyes, she suddenly felt her grief being rapidily replaced by shock as the message sunk in.

There was just no way. It had to be some kind of mistake. There was no way that what this letter was saying was true. It just couldn't be…

But, as she continued to read the letter, Hinamori came to realise that what it was saying had to be true. There was no mistaking it: this was her recently deceased captain's handwriting after all. And she knew that there was no way in the world he would ever lie to her, especially in his final words.

Knowing that something had to be done, she wiped away the remaining tears from her eyes as she stood up. Filled with a newfound determination to avenge her beloved captain's killer, she began to recite a kido spell under her breath and prepared herself for the blast she knew was soon to follow.

.

.

.

Soon, she found herself facing down the alleyway that hide her captain's assailant. Taking a deep breath, she then leapt forward as she prepared herself to confront her captain's killer and her beloved childhood friend, Hitsugaya Toshiro.

"Hinamori… What are you doing here?" he asked her in shock as she stood between him and the captain of squad three.

"Finally, I found you…" she responded, desperately trying to prevent the sob in her throat from escaping. "And now to avenge Captain Aizen's death…"

"Hinamori, wait! You're not strong enough to-" Hitsugaya began, but was soon rendered speechless as Hinamori withdrew her sword and pointed it at _his_ throat, not Ichimaru's. "Hina...mori… W-What are you…"

"I told you… I'm here to avenge Captain Aizen's death…" she replied coldly, although she felt her insides start to burn. "And that means killing his murderer… Killing _you_ , Hitsugaya-kun."

Before he could muster a response, Hinamori charged at him. It was only due to his years of training that he managed to dodge the attack on reflect, because otherwise his brain was in too much confusion to function. Just what was she saying? What was she… Why was she…

It didn't take long for Hinamori to recover from the momentum of her swing and charge at Hitsugaya again. This time, however, he was ready and was easily able to dodge her attacks. In fact, it was so easy that he had to wonder if she was even trying to hurt him all. After all, she hadn't even bothered to release her shikai, which was practically suicide against someone who could use Bankai if they needed.

"I.. I… can't… I can't do it…" Hinamori muttered as she stopped mid-assault. Then, she lifted her tear stained face to her childhood friend. "I can't hurt you, Hitsugaya-kun… Even though Captain Aizen said… Even though he told me in his letter that you… Oh, I just don't know what to do anymore, Shiro-chan…"

Without warning, Hitsugaya disappeared from her sight. Before Hinamori even had a chance to process this, she felt his presence suddenly appear right beside her.

"I see… So it was hidden in that bastard's letter, huh… I knew I should I have trusted my gut and burned the damn thing." a voice said at her side, so cold and heartless that Hinamori barely registered it as belonging to her childhood friend. "And to think that he dragged you into this… If I could, I'd kill that bastard all over again for the pain he put you through."

"Hitsugaya-" she began, but was soon cut off by a gasp as she felt a sudden wave of drowsiness take hold of her. Recognizing the sensation as a sleeping kido, she felt all the strength being sapped from her and would have collapsed on the spot had Hitsugaya caught her.

"It's alright, Hinamori…" she heard him say in a soothing voice. "Don't worry, I'll make sure nobody ever hurts you…"

"Now, Ichimaru, where were we…" and then Hinamori's world faded to black.

.

.

.

When she next awoke, Hinamori noticed that she was surrounded by white, unfamiliar walls. As she sat up and looked around, she realised that she was alone in a room that was barren except for the futon she was sitting on.

It was only when she tried to leave and realised that there was a barrier blocking her path that she figured out where she was. Her knees went weak and wave of nausea came over her stomach. She was in Hitsugaya Toshiro's captain's quarters.

The sudden recognition of where she was hit her like a tidal wave. She had to get out. There were too many questions that needed answering. And she refused to be helpless.

And so, she blasted the barrier with a kido spell and ran as fast she could. Once out, she felt several spiritual pressures intensify and suddenly fizzle out on Sokyoku Hill. Recognizing one of the dominant spiritual pressure as belonging to her childhood friend, she sprinted there as fast as her legs would carry her, praying that she made it there before it was too late.

It was only as she got closer and closer to Sokyoku Hill that she realised just how much spiritual pressure Hitsugaya was letting out. The sheer magnitude of it would have otherwise forced her to collapse had it not been for her strong determination to reach him. She had no idea he was that powerful… It was terrifying.

Once she reached the top and could see him, she collapsed to her knees. And not only because she could no longer rely on her determination to withstand his spiritual pressure, but also because of the sight that lay before her eyes. There, stood Hitsugaya with his hand choking the life out of Kuchiki Rukia, a mass of bloody bodies surrounding him. Most of them appeared to still be breathing, but she knew that if they didn't receive medical attention soon...

"Oh, Hinamori, you made it." he suddenly exclaimed, his hand still squeezing the young kuchiki's throat. "You got here a little earlier than I was expecting. Had I known you'd get here now, I would have let up on my spiritual pressure. Sorry about that."

"L-Let me… go…" Rukia gasped as she desperately tried to claw Hitsugaya's hand away from her throat. "Let… me-"

"Shut. Up." he growled in response as he shoved his other hand through her chest. And he then withdrew his hand almost as quickly as it went in, a small glass sphere now in his blood covered hand. Taking a look to expect that the sphere was indeed the object he was searching for, he threw away Rukia's now unconscious body and began to advance towards Hinamori.

Hinamori desperately tried to speak as he walked towards her, but no words could escape her lips. Not only was his spiritual pressure soul crushing, but the scene that was playing out in front of her was just too much for her mind to process. She had no idea that her childhood friend could act this way. That he could be so… cold.

"Here, is this better?" Hitsugaya asked her after suppressing his spiritual pressure and extending out a hand to help her back up. "I really didn't meant to make you go through that. But, the fact that you could not only withstand, but also make your way up here despite my spiritual pressure means that you'll have no trouble fitting in where we're going. I gotta say, that's a relief."

"W-We? We're… going?" Hinamori stuttered in response, her voice starting to return to her.

"Of course, we." he answered, helping her stand up again. "There's no way I would ever leave you here with these _traitors_ , after all."

Before she could even ask what he meant by _traitors_ , a sudden flash of light came directly at them. She didn't even have a chance to blink before Hitsugaya effortlessly blocked Soi Fon attack.

"You'll have to do better than that." Hitsugaya stated as he pushed the squad two captain back. "Try a weak attempt like that again and you'll lose your head."

"Why you little…" Soi Fon growled as she charged at Hitsugaya again, only to have her attacks easily blocked once again. Hinamori could barely believe it, the capable captain Soi Fon was reduced to a weakling in her childhood friend's presence.

"Psst, Hinamori!" she heard a voice she recognized as Kira calling from behind her, motioning her over to him. "Quick! While he's too busy to notice!"

Hinamori, so overwhelmed by what was taking place around her, couldn't bring herself to walk towards the squad three lieutenant. Noticing that she wasn't walking towards him, Kira assumed that she couldn't hear him and decided to bring her to safety himself.

Unfortunately for Kira, Hitsugaya noticed him charge towards Hinamori out of the corner of his eye. As such, he quickly knocked Soi Fon unconscious and launched a kido spell after Kira.

Fearing that the spell would kill her academy classmate, Hinamori didn't hesitate to run and push Kira out of the way, the spell missing them both by mere centimeters. Hitsugaya, noticing just how close it had come to hitting her, started to run to where Hinamori and Kira were standing.

Except, before he could reach her, a large yellow beam came down from the sky and engulfed him in its light.

"NO!" Hitsugaya cursed as he banged his fist against the solid beam. "CURSE YOU! I swear, if it's the last thing I do, I'll take her back. I won't ever let you hurt her, you hear me!? And I will kill anyone and _anything_ that gets in my way!"

And with that, he vanished into the hollow-made whole in the sky.

Leaving Hinamori all alone, surrounded by the shattered pieces of her life as she knew it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Welcome to the second chapter!**

 **I can tell from the reviews I got for the last chapter that a lot of you were pretty surprised about what happened and want to know what's going to happen next. Glad to know that having a vague description helped in not spoiling the surprise!**

 **Also, a couple of you asked if Hitsugaya is evil in this story. And all I have to say is... you can be the judge of that. :)**

 **Without further delay, here's the chapter!**

 **~ H-Mira**

* * *

Chapter 2:

It felt like no sooner had Hitsugaya disappeared from her sight that Hinamori felt herself being forcefully pushed to the ground and restrained. Squinting from having dirt shoved in her eyes, she felt powerless to fight against those restraining her from behind.

Not that she would have fought back even if she could. She simply had no strength or will left in her. Not after what just happened…

"Hey! Just what are you doing!?" she heard a voice call out in her defense. "Hinamori-kun had nothing to do with this! So there's no need to-"

"Kira," another voice responded. "Don't. If we try to do anything now, we'll just make things worse for her."

"Abarai-kun…" she heard her old classmate reply.

But she couldn't have cared less about the exchange. She was so tired, so exhausted. And when the familiar sensation of a sleeping kido hit her, she welcomed her darkening world with open arms.

.

.

.

When she next awoke, Hinamori felt herself become immediately blinded by a strong light. Surrounded by unfamiliar walls and straining against the sunlight, she found herself wondering where she could be. She tried to lift her hand to block the sun from her eyes, only to realise that she couldn't move her arms.

That's when the realisation hit her. She was a captive, someone suspected of betraying the Soul Society. And that Hitsugaya Toshiro…. Her most trusted and loyal friend… was the reason why she was now awaiting a possible death sentence from the Captains council. She would have started to panic if she was not still feeling the after effects of the kido they hit her with.

It felt like no sooner had she remembered what was happening that Captain Kyoraku and Captain Ukitake exited a large room and began to make their way towards her. Without so much as exchanging a word, they gently helped her to her feet and escorted her towards the room they had just exited. Hinamori thought she saw Captain Ukitake give her a reassuring smile, but that smile had no hope behind it. It only had pity.

Before they even reached the room, the overbearing doors swung open and revealed the nine captains laying wait inside. Looking around the room, Hinamori noticed a wide array of expressions facing her way. Some were curious and sympathetic, others were stern and wary. And after remembering just who the two missing captains were, it took all of the strength left in her not to shed a tear as she was brought to the centre of the room.

"Vice Captain Hinamori," the Head Captain began, over powering the silent room with his voice. "You are brought here today under suspicions of conspiracy to aid the traitor and former captain, Hitsugaya Toshiro, in overthrowing the Soul Society and assassinating the Soul King. How do you plead?"

Overthrowing the Soul Society? Assassinating the Soul King? Just what were they talking about? Even though Hinamori had to admit that her childhood friend had defected from the Seireitei, but not once throughout the ordeal had he mentioned anything about overthrowing the Soul Society, let alone assassinating the Soul King. So just how did they know…

And that's when it hit her: traitors. During the small exchange she had with Hitsugaya on top of Sogyoku Hill, he had called the Seireitei traitors. And Hinamori had a nagging feeling that those present in the room around her knew exactly why Hitsugaya had called them that…

"The girl is obviously guilty" she heard Soi Fon say as she was still wrapping her head around what was happening. "Look at her, she's just stalling for time. I say we throw the traitor's girlfriend in the Maggot's Nest or execute her and be done with it."

"Now, now, Captain Soi Fon" the squad three captain jumped in. "Don't you think you're being a little impatient? That's some mighty talk for someone who was sent running with her tail between her legs."

"Shut up!" the squad two captain sneered back. "He just caught me off guard. Next time I'll definitely-"

"Enough!" the head captain roared. "Now, lieutenant Hinamori, how do you plea?"

With all eyes on her once again, Hinamori felt the weight of the room on her shoulders. So much so, that it felt like a miracle when she was able to clearly say "I plead not guilty, Head Captain Yamamoto."

"Then tell us your events of what transpired" the head captain demanded.

And that's exactly what Hinamori did. She told them everything, from reading her dead captain's letter, to confronting Hitsugaya with her captain's allegations against him, and to waking up the next day confused and alone in his room. She even told them about what happened on Sogyoku hill that day. She told them everything, except for when Hitsugaya had called them traitors. That bit of information, she thought, was better kept for only those she knew she could trust.

"And you expect us to just take you at your word?" the wounded squad two captain retorted. "Don't you have any proof? Someone who can vouch that what you just said is true?"

Did she have any proof? She immediately thought of Aizen's letter, but remembered that it wasn't next to her when she woke up in Hitsugaya's room the following day. Her childhood friend must have been true to his promised and disposed of the letter while she was unconscious.

What about an alibi? Was there anyone who had seen her, could confirm that what she said was true? After scrambling through her blurred memories of that night, she realised that someone _had_ seen her that night. And this person was standing right in this very room.

"Poor Hinamori-chan, no one to confirm your story, huh?" Ichimaru asked, an almost strange amount of malice in his voice. "If only someone had seen you, then we could have believed ya…"

Hinamori was about to say that _he_ had seen her, but right before the words could leave her lips, Ichimaru shot her a glare so terrifying that her words died in her throat. They both knew he was lying, and yet Hinamori had no idea why. Just what did Ichimaru have to gain? Did he really want her dead so badly? Or was there something more, another reason why he lied….?

"Lieutenant Hinamori, do you have a way to prove your testimony?" the head captain asked, to which Hinamori hesitantly shook her head. "Very well then. As head captain of the thirteen court guard squads, I pronounce you… not guilty."

"However," Head Captain Yamamoto continued before anyone else could speak. "That does not mean you are free to go as you please. While I do choose to honour your position within the thirteen court guard squads and give your testimony the benefit of the doubt, it does not mean that you should not be considered as a potential threat to the Soul King and to the Soul Society as a whole. Your history with the traitor is too strong to ignore, not to mention his attachment to you. Therefore, we must decide what is to be done with you, Lieutenant Hinamori."

"Why not use the girl as a weapon?" Captain Kurotsuchi asked. "You said so yourself, the boy is obsessively attached to her. So why not use that attachment to our advantage and have her kill him? It would certainly save us all the trouble. And if she refuses, I can always be very… persuasive."

Hinamori suddenly felt sick to her stomach. Her, kill Hitsugaya? The boy she grew up with… Her little Shiro-chan… He had always been her rock, despite being younger than her in age. Always there, always listening... Could she really hurt him? She couldn't do it that night, but could she now? Now that she knew what he was really accused of?

"Now, let me just say what everyone else in the room is thinking" Kyoraku began. "Obviously, none of us want to send the poor girl to her death, not to mention make her do something against her will. But... desperate times call for desperate measures. We all saw what the kid did to good old Captain Aizen… and he didn't even have a scratch on him to show for it. Plus he was able to keep up Captain Soi Fon's speed… While it is possible that we'd be able to beat him in a team, I doubt we've even seen a fraction of what he's really capable of. And now with the hogyoku in his possession… I just think we should cover all our bases, and if that means using poor Hinamori-chan… Then so be it."

Much to Hinamori's disbelief, all of the captains in the room eventually agreed to Captain Kyoraku's proposal. As they went over the details of the agreement, which included either using her as bait or having her be the one to commit the killer act, Hinamori's nausea continued to get worse. And before she knew it, her vision was blurry and her chest was wet. Just how long had she been crying? And why did no one but her seem to notice?

"Now, where should we keep the girl in the meantime?" Captain Kenpachi asked, scratching his head in boredom. "Throw her in the Maggot's Nest or not, I don't care. Let's just get this over with."

"Why not hide her instead?" Captain Tousen spoke out. "The girl is no criminal as of yet, so it would be unjust to treat her as such. Furthermore, as a previous captain of the Gotei 13, Hitsugaya Toshiro would be more than familiar with how to get in and out of that prison unseen. Not to mention that it would be the first place he would think to look. No... I would suggest we hide her instead. Someone place he would never even think to look."

"And where do you propose that would be?" the head captain inquired.

"The world of the living." Tosen continued. "I have heard word from ex-captain Urahara Kisuke that he is developing a new type of gigai, one that is similar to the one that Kuchiki Rukia was using. This gigai completely suppresses all traces of spiritual pressure from those wearing it, as long as they remain in the gigai at all times. So, if we were to put lieutenant Hinamori in one of those gigais, we could hide her in plain sight."

"Yes, yes… that could work." Captain Ukitake added. "We could also send a team with her, just to make sure nothing happens to her. And we could ask the ryoka for help too. Now that the matter with Rukia has been cleared up, I'm sure they'd be more than willing to help us if we asked."

"Then it has been decided" the head captain echoed. "We will make the arrangements tonight. And tomorrow, this mission will begin."


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome back to _Instead of Glass, There was Ice_!**

 **Yikes, it's been nearly a year since I last updated this. I've really been letting this one go...**

 **Sorry to anyone who was looking forward to where I was going with this.**

 **I'm going to try to keep updating this, but I can't guarantee how often I can do that since my life's pretty busy at the moment.**

 **But I do promise to make an effort to write when I can.**

 **So without any further delay, here's chapter 3**

* * *

Chapter 3:

Hinamori barely got any sleep that night. Whenever she'd try to close her eyes, flashbacks of the last 24 hours would jolt her awake. Memories of the Aizen's letter… the trial… and of her childhood friend, surrounded by a bunch of unconscious bodies with an indifferent look on his face…..

That last one hurt the most.

When it was finally time for her to get up and get ready for the long day ahead of her, she did so with little enthusiasm. In fact, her body seemed to move on its own out of habit, her mind elsewhere. She barely even heard the repeated knocks on her door, confirming if that she was ready for the day's journey. And when she finally mustered up the courage to open the door and face the day, she was met with two unfamiliar faces who looked like they'd much rather drag her to the Maggot's Nest then escort her to the world of the living. And Hinamori was pretty sure that they were only the first set of unwelcoming faces that she was going to have to face before the day was over.

Without so much as a word, the two guards abruptly turned around and began to walk back along the corridors of the 5th division. They didn't even bother to look back once to see if Hinamori was actually following along behind them as they made their way to their next destination. Though the idea of simply not following them did cross her mind, the lieutenant was quick to shrug it off and join her escorts. As rude their behaviour was, at least they didn't try to handcuff her like the criminal they assumed she was.

During their walk to the gate, Hinamori couldn't help but notice the looks she getting. Although she tried her best to resist the temptation to look around, she still managed to catch the odd glimpse of people stopping and whispering to each as she walked by. And although she couldn't hear what exactly they were saying, it didn't take a prodigy to know that it wasn't anything nice.

When the gate finally came into view, Hinamori was shocked to see two faces that she actually recognized, both of which were shooting reassuring smiles her way.

"Hinamori-kun, you're finally here!" Kira yelled as he waved her over. "I was starting to think you weren't going to show!"

"Um, Kira, I don't think she had much of a choice" Abarai replied with a quick sigh before turning to face his newly arrived friend. "It looks like you've had one hell of rude awakening this morning" he added as he shot a quick glance at Hinamori's escorts. "Don't worry, you don't look _that_ terrible".

Before Hinamori could respond, she was tackled from behind and pulled into a hug. "Don't be rude, Abarai" a feminine voice said. "Even with only a few hours of sleep, she still looks _much_ better than you."

"R-Rangiku-san?" Hinamori stuttered. "You're coming too?"

"Yup!" Matsumoto happily replied, giving the fifth division lieutenant quick squeeze before letting her go and facing her. "You didn't think I was going to let you guys go on a trip without me, did you?"

Hinamori didn't know what to say. For the last few hours, she had felt so utterly alone. Her world falling apart around her. And now, she was surrounded by nothing but warm and welcoming faces… Surrounded by people who truly cared about her and believed in her...

She then thought that maybe, just maybe, things might be okay.

"Oops, looks like we missed the heartfelt reunion, Kuchiki-san" a playful voice stated, breaking the loving atmosphere in the air. "And here I was _so_ looking forward to it. Oh well!"

Hinamori suddenly felt a pit in her stomach. Turning around, she saw Ichimaru and the younger kuchiki sibling walk towards them. All it took was one look at the 3rd division captain's face to be reminded of the situation she was in and how she had gotten into it. Out of all the available captains of the 13 court guard squads, why did their supervising captain have to be _him_? Could her luck get any worse?

"Looks like we'll be relying on your human expertise for this one, Rukia" Abarai said with a smirk as he broke the tension in the air and greeted his childhood friend. "Try not to screw it up, okay?"

"Oh, please, Renji. We all know the only screw up here is _you_ " the short girl quick replied with a smirk of her own. "Trust me, no one understands humans better than _I_ do."

"Alright, everyone, let's get moving" Ichimaru stated as he ushered everyone towards the gate. "We have a long day ahead of us, after all."

With one last look at the word she was leaving behind, Hinamori joined the rest of her comrades and stepped through the gate to commenced her journey to the world of the living.

* * *

Once they got their gigais at Urahara's shop, Kuchiki informed them all of the cover story she came up with for their mission. In order to blend in with normal human society, she suggested that she, Kira, Abarai, Hinamori, and Matsumoto should pose as high school students at the school Kurosaki Ichigo and his friends attended. Ichimaru, due to his older looking appearance, would pose as the school's new teacher. This way, not only would they be able to blend in, but it also meant that they would be constantly near the substitute shinigami, who Kuchiki assured would _gladly_ help out if anything happened.

Hinamori wouldn't have described Kurosaki as "happy to help" when the group of them dropped by his school unannounced, but that was just her opinion….

When the lunch bell rang to signal their one hour break, Hinamori was quick to try and get out of the stuffed classroom. With the chaos their busy morning getting settled into the world of the living, she needed some down time to herself. But when she tried to leave the classroom unaccompanied, she was stopped by a chilling voice.

"Now, now, Hinamori-kun, where do you think you're going?" Ichimaru called as he approached her with one of his infamous smiles. "Don't ya know you're not supposed to be on your own? We can't risk anything _bad_ happening to our lovely little _hostage_ \- I mean _comrade_ , now, can we?"

"Ichimaru-tai- Err, I mean, Ichimaru- _sensei_ is right!" Kira was quick to add in before Hinamori could reply. "What if _he_ hurts you when you're alone?! There's no way I'm letting that filthy _traitor_ get his hands on you, Hinamori, so don't you worry about a thing!"

It took all the strength Hinamori had not to snap at Kira. How could he possibly suggest that Hitsugaya would hurt her!? Not to mention, last time she checked, Kira had nearly gotten himself _killed_ the last time he faced the former tenth division captain. So what made him think he could possibly stand a chance against him?

"Hey, Hinamori, how about we grab lunch on the roof, okay?" Matsumoto chimed in with the hopes of diffusing the situation before it got any worse. "I know we aren't supposed to go up there, but I'm sure we can find a way!"

Not trusting herself yet to speak, Hinamori could only nod in response before being dragged out of the classroom by voluptuous lieutenant. The 10th division officer seemed quite eager to get out of there before either of the 3rd division officers had a chance to object.

Once on the rooftop, the strawberry blond let go of her friend's arm and commenced to walk towards the railing. Taking in the view of the sky above her, she let out a sigh.

"I can't believe Kira…" she spoke with a shrug. "You'd think that with all those brains of his he would have an ounce of common sense, but I that's just too much to hope for."

"...What do you mean, Rangiku-san?" Hinamori asked as she joined her friend, choosing her words carefully along the way.

"I mean exactly what I said" Matsumoto replied. "Like taichou would ever hurt _you_ of all people! God, ever since this whole thing happened, it's like everyone has forgotten everything they ever knew about him… I mean, sure, he could have faked some of it, but I doubt he faked everything… Taichou is still the same person he always was. He's just… Well…. Sigh, I don't know..."

"So… You still believe in him, then?" Hinamori timidly questioned, shocked to hear that someone besides herself didn't think that her childhood friend was a total monster.

"...I want to" the 10 division lieutenant replied with another sigh. "I want to believe that all those years together weren't just lies, you know? You spend so much time with a person… It's hard to believe that they're suddenly not who they said they were…. That they never were who they said they were… I don't know what's going through his head right now, or even why he's doing all this, but… There must be a reason. There's no way taichou would do all this… Put us through all this… if there wasn't a good reason for it. There's just no way."

Hinamori felt a single tear start to make its way down her cheek. Hearing someone else say the words she desperately wanted to hear washed over her as a tidal wave of relief. If someone else, someone who really knew him, also couldn't think of him as a traitor, then maybe there was still some hope left…

Some hope that maybe, just maybe, her childhood friend would come back to her.

"Oh, Hinamori…" Matsumoto whispered as she rubbed the crying girl's back in support. "It's hard, isn't it? Hearing people talk about him like that? They just don't know him like we do… or, at least, how we thought we knew him."

"R-Rangiku-san…" Hinamori muttered as she let out all the emotions she had bottle up in the last two days. "He wouldn't just leave, right? Leave me… leave us… without a reason, right? There has to be a reason!... There just has to be…"

"There's no way he would ever leave you, Hinamori. You should know that by now" Matsumoto said with a comforting smile. "I mean, if it was just me he left behind, then maybe… but… For him to leave _you_ … Well, there's no way he would do that willingly, that's for sure. Hell, if the rest of the Seireitei thought he didn't care about you, then they wouldn't have us under constant surveillance, now, would they?"

"...Us? What do you mean _us_?" the fifth division lieutenant asked in confusion.

"Wait, you didn't seriously think you're the only one they're keeping an eye on, did you?" Matsumoto replied. "Sure, you're his closest friend and all, but I was his second in command. They'd be total idiots not to be suspicious of me. So by having the two of us along on this _mission_ , they're killing two birds with one stone."

"So I guess that just makes us a couple of caged birds… huh?" Hinamori joked with a weak smile, her tears long since dried up.

"Looks like we'll just have to flock together, Hinamori" Matsumoto answered with a laugh.

* * *

By the end of the day, Hinamori was exhausted and could have collapsed on the spot. She forgot how tiring it was to be in classes all day, especially when she was desperately trying to understand what was going on. Sure, it wasn't as though she needed to pass the classes for her mission, but she had always been one who enjoyed learning new things regardless of how trivial they might be. And she also gladly welcomed the distraction the lessons provided her from the current situation.

It had been decided earlier that day that she, Matsumoto, and Ichimaru would be staying over at Inoue Orihime's house during the course of their stay in the world of the living. Abarai and Kira were to stay over at Urahara's and Kuchiki was to stay over at Kurosaki's, despite the substitute Shinigami's many protests. Although Kira had initially objected to the idea of them separating at night, which he argued to be the ideal time for Hitsugaya to make an appearance, Ichimaru was quick to silence him on the matter. And for the first time that day, Hinamori was grateful to the third division captain. As much as Hinamori liked Kira, she couldn't handle another second of him constantly bearing over her like some sort of guard dog.

When she reached the Inoue residence along with the others, Hinamori was glad that the day was finally over and she could be alone with her thoughts. So when the opportunity presented itself, Hinamori was quick to exit out of her bedroom window to relax on the rooftop. She thought that as long as she didn't go far, there wouldn't be any harm. Besides, with the window still open, the people down below would be able to hear anything if she was loud enough. So Hinamori figured she'd be safe.

Having heard earlier that day that Matsumoto harbored the same doubts that she did was a huge weight off her shoulders. Even if she was no closer to uncovering the answer as she was the day before, just knowing that she had someone else she could confide in was enough. It was one more thing that she had that she didn't have the day before. And maybe tomorrow, she would take another step forward in figuring out the secret behind her childhood friend's sudden betrayal.

"Oh Hitsugaya-kun…." Hinamori muttered to herself as she stared at the starry sky above. "Just what are you doing?"

"I'm stood here talking to you, what else would I be doing?" a familiar voice suddenly spoke, shocking Hinamori to the core.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Hinamori quickly whipped her head around to look behind her, unable to believe her ears. Unfortunately, the momentum of her swing was so great that she lost her balance and toppled backwards.

And she would have fallen off the roof too…. Had her companion not rushed to help her regain her balance.

"Easy now, Hinamori" Hitsugaya said with a slight smile as he helped her sit back up. "We can't have you falling for me that easily now, can we?"

"Hitsuga-" Hinamori exclaimed, only to have her childhood friend quickly cover her mouth with his hand.

"Keep it down" he quietly urged. "It'd be troublesome if the others were to suddenly show up now. It would ruin everything..."

The sight of her childhood friend so close to her caused the words to die in her throat. She couldn't help but be captivated by his teal eyes, so fierce and determined that Hinamori couldn't focus on anything else. He had never looked at her like that before….

Hitsugaya took her silence as understanding and slowly removed his hand from her lips. He allowed himself to relax once more, now that he knew his cover wasn't about to be blown mere seconds after his arrival. With the tension gone from his face, Hinamori was able to break free from her trance and regain her voice.

"...Hitsugaya-kun" Hinamori began again, this time making sure to keep her voice down. "W-Why are you here? Are you here to... t-take me with you?"

Hitsugaya didn't reply at first as he sat down next to her. He looked as though he was internally debating something. And judging by the look on his face before he finally spoke, it seemed as though the less favourable position had won.

"...No" He replied with a sigh. "As much as I want to, it would put everything else in jeopardy… and we're just not ready yet for _that_ to happen. So I can't… for now."

"W-What do you mean?" Hinamori asked as she leaned towards him, her curiosity getting the better of her. "Why can't you…?"

"That eager to come with me, huh?" Hitsugaya teased, which earned him a quick glare from his companion. "But in all seriousness, just think about it. How could I have found you so quickly? You're wearing gigai that completely suppresses your spiritual and you're hidden in the world of the living. So, tell me, how did I find you?"

The lieutenant paused for a minute as she tried to think of answer. Her gigai got rid of her spiritual pressure, so he couldn't have traced her… She was in the world of the living, which wouldn't exactly be the first place he would think to look… And it had only been a day since she left, so he couldn't have just so happen to find her... So how did he…

And that's when it hit her.

"Someone… told you" she slowly replied, still trying to process the words as they were coming out of her mouth. "Someone told you exactly where I was."

Hitsugaya nodded. "And that's why I can't take you with me. It took you all of ten seconds to figure it out. How long do you think it would take the Seireitei?"

Hinamori didn't reply, her thoughts desperately trying to piece everything together. Someone had told Hitsugaya where she was, which meant that he had someone working with him on the inside... And that someone had to be of a high enough rank to even know anything about her current circumstances, since her stay in the world of the living was classified information... This meant that they had to be a captain or someone who was currently staying in the world of the living with her….

Or, it dawned on her, they could be both.

"Is it… Ichimaru-taichou?" Hinamori asked as she searched her companion's face for answers. "Is he the one working with you?"

"Ichimaru?" Hitsugaya repeated, clearly taken aback by her question. "Him? Really? That snake is in it for no one but himself… and maybe Matsumoto... The point is, I wouldn't trust him as far as I can throw him. I mean, sure, we did have that one conversation that night, but… Truth be told, I don't even know what to make of it. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is no, he's not the one I'm talking about."

"Then... who?" the young lieutenant questioned once more.

"...I think it would be for the best if I don't answer that" Hitsugaya replied with a sly smile. "I mean, what if I told you and you started acted differently because of it? Then it wouldn't even matter that I didn't take you with me: they would still know you saw me. It then wouldn't take long for them to put two and two together to figure out how I knew where you were…. and everything would just fall apart. So for now, just try to keep your questions at bay, okay? The more you know, the more dangerous this becomes."

"Then why come here at all?" Hinamori asked, slightly hurt and angry at Hitsugaya's lack of confidence in her secret-keeping abilities. "If letting me know anything at all is _so_ dangerous, then why even show up?!"

Before Hitsugaya could urged her again to keep her voice down, a voice called up from down below.

"Hinamori? Everything okay?" a familiar female voice yelled from inside the house. "Is something going on? You sound upset. If you want, I can come up and-"

"Everything's fine, Rangiku-san!" Hinamori yelled back down almost a little too quickly. "There's no need to come up, really! Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be right back down, okay?"

The two childhood friends took Matsumoto's lack of reply as a sign that she trusted everything was indeed okay. However, the two knew that it wouldn't be wise to continue their conversation for too much longer, for fear that Matsumoto really would come up to check on Hinamori.

So Hitsugaya then stood up and began to make his exit. But before he disappeared into the night, he left Hinamori with the answer to one of the questions she had asked him that night.

"I came here because… I just had to see you." he said with his back facing his childhood friend. "Things didn't exactly end well the last time I saw you and… I just needed to make sure that you were okay... That _we_ were okay… I know you're confused and desperate for answers right now, but just try to believe in me, okay?"

"Why did you kill him?" Hinamori blurted out before hitsugaya could leave, causing him to freeze in place. He knew she had a thousand questions she wanted this ask him and he knew it was only a matter of time before she asked him that one. "Oh, Hitsugaya-kun, why did you kill Aizen-Taichou...?"

"...Just believe in me" was all Hitsugaya allowed himself to reply, his hands in solid fists.

And with that, Hitsugaya vanished into the night. Leaving Hinamori alone, once again...

* * *

Hinamori didn't even recall falling asleep that evening, let alone even coming down from the rooftop. It seemed as though one second she was staring at the empty space where Hitsugaya silhouette once stood, and then the next she was waking up to the sight of light pink walls and a white sealing.

With streaks of light shining through the open window, the lieutenant surrendered herself to arrival of a new day and got out of bed. As she got dressed, her thoughts wandered to the previous evening. It felt almost surreal, the idea of having met with her childhood friend. Despite everything that had happened, it felt as though nothing had changed at all. He was still the same know-it-all and wise cracking person he had always been.

But at the same time, everything had changed. She had met him yesterday with hundreds of questions, and although he had answered some of them, it felt as though she had more questions now than when she started. The biggest of them being who Hitsugaya's mysterious helper was. She had been so sure that if anyone was involved it had to be the captain of squad three. But now… She was at a lost.

Hinamori was only broken from her thoughts when a sudden knocking began at her door. After doing a quick once-over to make sure she looked presentable, she opened her door and was immediately met with the sight of Matsumoto's massive chest in her face.

"Oh good, you heard me!" Matsumoto exclaimed as she took a step back to give Hinamori some room to breathe. "Listen, you've got to try this new dishe Inoue cooked up. I never knew pickles and eggs could taste so good!"

Had it not been for the fact that she had skipped supper the night before, Hinamori was sure her stomach would have turned at the mention of what was in store for her for breakfast. Not trusting herself to not offend Matsumoto or Inoue, the fifth division lieutenant merely nodded in response as Matsumoto swung her arm around Hinamori's shoulders and brought her towards the kitchen.

Yet, just before they entered the kitchen, the 10th division lieutenant whispered something into her companion's ear.

"So you'll tell me later what Taichou had to say later, right?" Matsumoto said with a hint of amusement in her voice. "I'm dying to know."

Before Hinamori could respond, Matsumoto quickly removed her arm from the fifth division lieutenant's shoulders and greeted Ichimaru and Inoue who were already enjoying their morning tea.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

On the walk to the high school that morning, Hinamori kept going over those two sentences in her head. It had not even been 12 hours since she contacted her childhood friend and someone had already figured it out. Sure, it was Matsumoto, and Hinamori felt she could trust her, but still… Not even 12 whole hours had she managed to keep it a secret from her "protectors"...

Maybe Hitsugaya was right to doubt her secret keeping ability after all.

In any event, Hinamori was just glad that it was only Matsumoto who noticed. Matsumoto showed her yesterday that she was also concerned about the white haired captain and wanted to believe in him. So, if someone had to find out about it, it was a good thing that it was her... But, had it been anyone else who noticed, then…. Well… Hinamori would need to improve on her poker face. And fast.

The fifth division lieutenant spent the entirety of the morning period trying to narrow down who could be Hitsugaya's information provider. She only had two clues to work with: 1) they were likely a captain, or 2) someone who was "protecting" her right now. But then, the more she thought about it, the more she became less sure of these criteria… After all, it was possible that the informant overheard someone talking about it… or simply snuck in and stole the information. Perhaps the informant had been secretly following her since Hitsugaya left, so they would always know where she was….

The possibilities seemed endless.

By the time the lunch bell rang, Hinamori could have pitched her pencil across the room in frustration. There were just _way_ too many possibilities that it seemed impossible to narrow it down. Surely there something or someone who stuck out more than the rest…. A more likely candidate that Hitsugaya would choose to confide in…. Even over _her_ …. But her mind was just drawing a blank. Did she really pay so little attention to his interactions with others to not even think of a _few_ people he might trust...? The thought sadden as much as it discouraged her.

"Hinamori…." Matsumoto called to her in an anxious voice, waving her hand in front of the raven haired girl's face. "Don't you think it's time we had that…. _Talk_?"

And that's when it hit her - maybe Matsumoto could help! As his right hand officer, she would know better than anymore who Hitsugaya is most likely to interact with on a daily basis. She could help narrow it down!

"Yes!" the fifth division lieutenant exclaimed, startling her friend with her sudden enthusiasm. "Yes, let's head up to the roof right away!"

But before they could take more than a few steps towards the classroom door, a voice interrupted them.

"Hey, where are you two going?" Abarai asked with a yawn, taking a moment away from his conversation with Kuchiki to notice the two lieutenants leaving.

"We're… going to have lunch on the roof" Hinamori replied nervously, figuring now was as good a time as any to work on her poker face. "We figured out a way to sneak up there yesterday and really liked the view, so…"

"Oh, is it really that nice?" the red haired lieutenant questioned, to which Kuchiki responded with a nod to her companion. "If that's the case, maybe we'll join you-"

"Oh, Renji! Don't you know that's code for girl talk!?" Matsumoto chimed in with a wink, clearly much better of thinking on her feet than her shorter friend. "There's so much new stuff to do in the world of the living! So many stores to shop… sweets to eat… We just need to figure out what stores to hit first!"

"Oh, really? That maybe I'll just join-" Rukia began, but was cut off by the voluptuous women who was now leaning directly over her.

"...Really?" Rangiku asked with an evil smirk. "We'll be talking about plenty of other things too, you know. Things like what shows to buy, or… what guys we're _interested_ in. Now, _that_ is something I've always been wondering about you for little while, Kuchiki. It seemed so straight forward before, but now that I've gotten a good look at that substitute shinigami, well… This could prove to be a _very_ good lunch."

"...On second thought, I'll eat with Renji..." Rukia replied, breaking eye contact with the attractive women in front of her.

"That's what I thought" the strawberry blond stated as she once again looked to her raven haired friend and added "Well, Hinamori, our lunch awaits!"

* * *

"...Hmmm, interesting" the tenth division lieutenant puzzled as she went over the information her companion had just told her. "So he has someone on the inside, huh…. I have to admit, I'm a little hurt he didn't consider _me_ , but… At the same time, I gotta give the guy credit for being clever - because I'm stumped over who it could be."

"I know, right!?" Hinamori exclaimed with a sigh. _Finally_ someone could relate the frustration she had been feeling since last evening. "I've been trying to figure it out all morning and I'm drawing a blank. I think it's either a captain or someone in the world of the living with us right now, but even then it's still possible for it to be someone completely unrelated… Anyway, I still can't get over how you figured out I spoke to him so quickly!"

"Please!" the strawberry blond said with an eye roll. "You were talking so loud, how could I not hear you? Didn't you catch on when I called up to you, asking if you wanted company?! That was my way of telling you to quiet down before Inoue and Gin heard you too! You didn't honestly think I was going to go up there, did you?"

"I wasn't that loud..." Momo pouted in response, even doubting herself as the words left her lips.

"Sure, whatever you say, Hinamori." Matsumoto sarcastically replied. "Anyway, back to business with this mysterious informant. How about we start with the assumption that he has at least one captain on his side" Matsumoto added as she grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil from her bag. "Not a bad assumption, right? If he really is planning on taking on the whole Seireitei, then he'll need allies. And not just any allies, but _strong_ allies. So it would make sense if he has captain on his side. Plus, it wouldn't be weird to see him speaking privately to a fellow captain - something that can't really be said about him and _someone else's_ subordinate."

"That makes sense…" Hinamori muttered as she watched her friend write out the names of all the captains the piece of paper she had taken out. "But still, there's no guarantee-"

"Of course there isn't" Matsumoto interrupted, not even bothering to look up at her friend as she continued to write names down. "But we won't get anywhere unless we starts _somewhere_ , right? So I say we should just pick the most likely out of all the possible assumptions we can make and work from there. And if we need to, we'll start over again with a different one. Sounds good?"

Hinamori nodded in response. It really was as good a place to start as any - much better than the bottomless pit of possibilities she was going by earlier. So, she looked down as Matsumoto finished writing the names on her list and began examining the narrowed down possibilities:

1\. Yamamoto Genryuusai

2\. Soi Fon

3\. Ichimaru Gin

4\. Unohana Retsu

5\. Aizen Sousuke

6\. Kuchiki Byakuya

7\. Komamura Sajin

8\. Kyoraku Shinsui

9\. Kaname Tosen

10\. Hitsugaya Toshiro

11\. Zaraki Kenpachi

12\. Kurotsuchi Mayuri

13\. Ukitake Jushiro

"So… Let's start from the top and work our way down…" Matsumoto suggested as she looked down as the first name on her list. "I think it's safe to say that the head captain didn't suddenly decide to betray the organization he runs, so we can scratch him out."

The fifth division lieutenant nodded in response. "We can also scratch out Soi Fon-Taichou and Ichimaru-Taichou. Soi Fon-Taichou was defeated by Hitsugaya-kun so easily, remember? And I don't think she was faking how angry she looked afterwards… That look of wounded pride was just too real... And Hitsugaya-kun told me himself that it wasn't Ichimaru-taichou, so we can definitely scratch him out…"

"I suppose Unohana-taichou could be a possibility" Matsumoto added after crossing out the first three names. "I mean, it's always useful to have someone who's good at healing on your side if you plan on starting a war, right? I've also heard rumours that she's a deadly fighter, but I don't know… Could you really see her hurting _anyone_? Sure, she has that death stare of hers, but I don't think she would actually act on it…. Probably."

"But she's so loyal to Yamamoto-soutaichou…." Hinamori countered. "I can't imagine that she would just betray him… Not to mention another war would lead to more wounded, which kind of goes against the very purpose of her division… I guess she could be a possibility, but I doubt it."

"Well, let's just put her down as a maybe then" Matsumoto compromised as she put a star next the fourth division captain's name. Her pencil then hovered for a second over the next name on the list. But before the air could become heavy around them, the tenth division lieutenant quickly scratched out the name and move onto the next name on their list. "... So what about Kuchiki-taichou?"

"Hmm, not sure…" Hinamori mumbled as she heavily contemplated the next name on the list, very eager to get the previous unspoken name out of her mind before it had a chance to linger. "From what little I know about him, he'll do anything for the honour of his house… So, I guess if it benefited his house in some way, I could see him siding with Hitsugaya-kun."

"Alright, I follow you" Rangiku added as she put a star next to the sixth division captain's name. "Now what about Komamura-taichou? Personally, I can't see him going anywhere without Tosen-Taichou. And since I doubt Tosen-Taichou's sense of "justice" would let him betray the institution he's dedicated his life to, I think we can cross them both off the list."

"I think the same could be said about Kyoraku-Taichou and Ukitake-Taichou" the fifth division vice-captain said in response. "Where one goes, you'll find the other. And since they've been the head captain's loyal students forever, I don't think they'd betray him… So let's scratch them off too."

"So then the only two we have left now are Zaraki-Taichou and Kurotsuchi-taichou." Matsumoto stated as she looked down at their narrowed list. "Hmm, I can't really picture Taichou willingly working with _either_ of them… I guess I could see him putting up with Kurotsuchi-taichou if they had a common goal, but there's no way he would trust Zaraki-Taichou to gather intel and keep a secret. Even _I_ know better than to do that. So I say we can keep Kurotsuchi-taichou and cross out Zaraki-taichou."

"Let's see who that leaves us with, then" Hinamori stated as she examined their list again. "So we have Unohana-taichou, Kuchiki-taichou, and Kurotsuchi-taichou… Hmm, that makes things a lot simpler. Out of those three, which do you think is more likely?"

"Well, I think the most valuable choice would be Unohana-taichou, with her healing and all…" Matsumoto began as the thought it over more thoroughly. "But, like you said earlier, she's probably pretty loyal to the head captain, so she would be a tough sell… And while Kurotsuchi-taichou's knowledge would be valuable, I can't imagine Taichou would be able to stand him alone for more than five minutes… ten max… So I'm going to have to go with Kuchiki-taichou."

"...If that's true, do you think there's a possibility that Kuchiki-san here with us is in on it too?" Hinamori questioned, trying to piece things together in her head as she said them outloud. "They are related after all… And if Kuchiki-taichou is doing it for his house, then I could see Kuchiki-san doing it for the same reason… Plus, with her here with us on the mission, it would be a great way to keep an eye on what's happening without directly being involved…"

Before Matsumoto could respond, the bell rang signaling the end of lunch period.

"Well, looks like we'll have to work on that hunch for now. Best get back to class before people think we're ditching" the strawberry blond added as she stood up. "You know… unless you wanted to ditch. Which I am 100% okay with, by the way."

"No, let's head back" the raven haired girl said with a small laugh as she stood up as well. "Best not to make the others worry… even if the class really _is_ the most boring thing in the world. It makes me thankful that I had Abarai-kun in my classes in the Academy. At least with his reitsu explosions, you stayed awake in class!"

"God, that must have been hilarious!" Matsumoto responded with a laugh as the two ventured back inside. "Now, to this day, I still can't figure out how he managed to pass that class…"

* * *

Later that evening, Hinamori was lying awake on her cot as she she pondered over today's events. She might not have much of a grip on what was going on around her, but at least she now had a potential lead on who the mysterious informant could be. Now, she only had to try to think of a way to confirm her hunch…

As she was thinking of a millions ways to approach the subject with Rukia without revealing all the cards in her hand, her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by hushed voices coming from the other room. Curious, Hinamori slowly got out of bed and crept towards her door. Ever so gently, she pushed the door open and realised the voices were coming from Ichimaru's room.

"... And that's the end of my report. Same old, same old, here" Ichimaru concluded, his voice becoming more clear as Hinamori got closer to his door. "Looks like the little captain hasn't been able to find us yet."

 _That's what you think_ Hinamori thought to herself as she pressed up against the door and looked inside. In the room, she could make out Ichimaru talking to the head captain, Tosen, and Kyoraku through the telecommunication device they had brought with them when they left.

"Good, the smoother things run, the better" Kyoraku added with a nod of his head. "Now, if only things could keep going this smoothly, everything will work itself out in a week's time…"

"...A week?" Ichimaru questioned, his usual playful demeanor disappearing for an instance as he was caught off guard. "Has something changed?"

"Yes, quite" Kurotsuchi stated, startling Hinamori as she didn't see him before he suddenly appeared out from behind Kyoraku. "It appears that we have less time than I initially thought. It seems that we have a week to conclude the ceremony, possibly two if we want to take our chances… which I do _not_. Honestly, if it weren't for that short tempered swine, we could have had the ceremony over and done with by now!"

"But there's nothing we can do about that now" Kyoraku chimed in, trying to ease the tension in the room. "So we'll just need to get the girl back here at some point before the end of the week. I know we only just sent you all there, but look on the bright side! At least now you'll be able to come home sooner than we thought."

"While I bet that propect is certainly promising for Ichimaru-Taichou" Tosen interrupted. "We best not have them come back too early. The traitor has been unable to locate them as of yet, or else he surely would have taken her, so that appears to be the best hiding place for them in the meantime. Since the ceremony takes time to prepare, it may be for the best to keep them there until the day of the ceremony _next_ week. We wouldn't want to accidentally reveal her location when we've hidden her so well, now, would we?"

"It shall be as Tosen-Taichou suggested" the head captain echoed in agreement across the room. "You and the others will guard Hinamori-fukutaichou until such time as the ceremony begins. Then, and only then, will you all return. We cannot afford to lose this chance again, for we may not get another."

"As you wish, head captain" Ichimaru replied, his head low in a bow before his superior. "Now, if you will excuse me, it is fairly late here and I have a class of eager students to teach tomorrow. Bye, Bye."

As soon as Ichimaru turned off the screen, Hinamori was broken from her trance and scrambled to get back inside her room before the captain noticed her presence. Curled up underneath her blankets, she paused for a minute or two to see if she could hear any noise outside her door. She didn't even dare breath out of fear it would alert the captain of her eavesdropping. When enough time had finally passed, she breathed a sigh of relief knowing that the captain likely had no idea she was spying on his conversation. Yet, now that this problem was solved, the impact of what she had heard earlier came tumbling down over her.

Just when she thought she had something figured out, the world was pulled out from under her once again.

* * *

 _ **So I finally decided to update this story!**_

 _ **Sorry for the long wait! I'm really bad at staying motivated to write.**_

 _ **On the plus side though, I pretty have the whole story figured out now. So I at least won't need to take breaks to figure out what I want to do with it next!**_

 _ **Thank you so much for putting up with me!**_

 _ **~H-Mira**_

 _ **PS: About those suggestions for who the informant is... Best keep in mind that just because Hinamori and Matsumoto came to a certain conclusion, doesn't automatically mean I came to the same one. After all, I know things they don't :)**_


End file.
